Before I knew FF I was daydreaming Naruto everyday. I could only go to sleep if I thought about it. Then I read ffs like Naruto Unlimited, The Lazy Uchiha, Never Cut Twice and got inspired to write this. So well, the close to two year hiatus screwed everything up, but it made me embarrassed of what I'd written and forced me to make things clean and closable, which is a good thing, in a way. I have no idea how the canon will end.

Epilogue

"I got your banging on my knees

The thang is I do as I please

She sang in my jizz, I gave her some fees

Ain't nobody with with taste got my sleaze."

Kirabi smirked into his notepad as he jotted his fresh, mind stopping, heart bopping verse. He muttered to himself, "I'm the fucking in thing ya'll."

It was a scorching afternoon, the sky relentlessly blue with nonexistent clouds.

"Fucking, hot, but in a bad way, ya'll.

Think they'll put me in a pot, but that's not all I got,

I've got a lot to say today anyway and

all of you mudderfuckas gonna rot

like a blood shot

because my flow's hot, it's a shot, show pop.

"Ooh, I'm on a roll today," Kirabi muttered, and he continued to scribble furiously into his rhyming scrap book. "Hachibi, maybe we'll catch a few bitches on tha way and have some fun, yeah?"

Kazuya could not actually hear what the Eight Tails beast said, but he could tell there was a reply, because Kirabi smirked and continued humming. Listening to the Raikage's brother rap was akin to trying to purge yourself from any hip-hop affiliations. Sure, they rhymed, but there was zero rhythm or flow. Kazuya prefered traditional Japanese drums and Samisen, a three string banjo. In his life he had been staking out on a rooftop when he heard one Geisha playing the instrument, and it was beautiful.

Once again, he was lying back on the rooftop idly, listening to Kirabi in the house below him passing the day. Kirabi did three things. He slept from dawn to noon, rapped and ate from noon to evening. Night was his. It was when he trained.

Kazuya had been shadowing this routine for months now. He would turn fifteen tomorrow, and there was nothing special about the day, but he was so bored of stakeout that he wanted to make something out of it. This was his theory. Shisui and Kamui were after the Hachibi; sooner or later they would turn up at Kirabi's doorstep. Kazuya was planning to wait them out, then flush out Shisui like a soggy menstrual pad in a toilet bowl. He had the misfortune of doing this frequently, because the Land of Lightning believed in clogged, unisex water closets.

Night draped over Lightning Country like any other night. The Raikage tower and his administrative buildings, which were designed as giant yellow lanterns, cast a pink sheen to the dark sky. As expected, Kazuya trailed Kirabi to the cave away from the city. He followed Kirabi up the rocky path silently, his sandals not even crunching the crisp gravel underfoot. Kazuya liked to believe himself as one of the best assassins currently alive. He had five million credits worth of assasinations under his belt, along with the murders of the top two Sannin and the Sandaime Hokage. Personally, he would include Haku, who killed along with him. All in all, Haku's death made him a very big fish.

The trail broke off into grass as they neared the cave. But Kazuya stopped, because ahead of him Kirabi had stopped. There were two figures at the mouth of the cave, donning standard Akatsuki dress of black cloak and straw hat. Kazuya disappeared into the tree beside him. Shisui, finally. He expected both of them to wear out fighting Kirabi and Hachibi, because he had seen the jinchuuriki training and he was very good.

"Hachibi, I presume?" Shisui drawled.

"It's Killer Bee to you. Who are you slinky faggots?"

"Nobody that will concern you. We just want that power inside of you. Will you save yourself a lot of pain by surrendering quietly to us?"

"Are my balls made out of spleen

Look at my grin, do I seem so keen?" Kirabi rapped.

"I'll handle this, Shisui," Kamui said softly. Even in the dark Kazuya could see his multi-colored gaze flashing.

Shisui stepped around Kirabi and walked towards the trail. "I'll be waiting for you at the teppanyaki place you wanted to try just now, Kamui."

Kirabi watched Shisui disappear and he looked ticked off. He regarded Kamui shrewdly. "Your lover thinks a wimpy looking fag like you can beef with me."

Kamui opened his mouth to reply, but then Kazuya was already turning away. Shisui walked right by his tree, humming to himself.

Kirabi sniffed the air. He could smell the weight of blood on Kamui and intuitively knew that the Akatsuki ninja was dangerous. There would be no verse writing for now. Masterfully, he drew all eight blades from the sheath-contraption on his back and threw them up into the air. As they fell in order, he caught one with his right knee, then between his thigh and ribs, two at one go beneath his left armpit and bicep, two again with his left elbow and shoulder, and finally between his teeth.

"Before I kill you, Mister Fucker," Kirabi called out. "Why do you want to capture me? What business do you have with Hachibi?"

"Hachibi is a resource our organisation could do with," Kamui replied. His black eyes flashed purple.

"Hachibi," Kirabi started through his teeth, "says that he'd rather give you a black penis. You're gonna feel my hook."

Is that so. Kamui thought. Kirabi seemed to crumple for an odd second, then he pitched forward and started careening like a rattan ball towards Kamui. The awkwardly balanced swords flashed through the air like spikes on a chain. Kamui acted immediately. He blinked his onyx eyes into amethyst. Poisonous fumes rushed out with a whoosh of air.

Kirabi plowed straight into the thick cloud. He held his breathe immediately and leapt out of the fog. As he spun out, Kamui's eyes turned red. He raised his hand to his mouth just as an Uchiha would commit to a Grand Fireball. Katon! Goukakyu no jutsu! Kirabi fell into the fireball. Suddenly, there was a great roar and red chakra ripped apart the fireball.

Kamui leapt back onto the top of the cave mouth. The smoke cleared, and Kamui was just in time to see Kirabi hurl a sword at him. It was a naiive move for the Raikage's brother, but he supposed Kirabi was getting frustrated from being interrupted twice. Kamui sidestepped the sword and took hold of its handle. He would engage the Hachibi host in close range combat now. Once his fingers closed over the handle, however, Kamui felt a rude spark twitch through his entire system. He fell and crashed into the ground, momentarily stunned by the electricity in the sword.

Howlign, Kirabi ran forward again. A katana flashed. Kamui hopped over it, but then Kirabi's right elbow came down and the blade slashed into his chest. Kamui backed away just in time and mule kicked Kirabi. The man soared through the air and cracked a tree as he stopped in it. Shit, he got me, Kamui thought. His eyes turned azure blue and a water dragon bowled into Kirabi. The dragon slung Kirabi high into the night sky, then hit him from above. Kirabi fell faster than free fall and smashed into the ground with ten waterfalls pumelling into him.

Kamui assessed his chest injury. It looked worst that it was. He popped a blood replenishing pill into his mouth and with pressed his palm against the slash. He knew some fundamental healing techniques.

Kirabi's soft growl alerted him. "Time for Number Eight:

"Rari Atto!"

A shudder rippled through the air. Diluted crimson bubbles popped and burst on Kirabi's tan arms. Deformed by the cruel water dragon, the chakra bubbles inflated Kirabi's body and lifted him to his feet. Within moments, he was encovered in a shroad of Hachibi chakra, six tails sprouting behind him. A claw-shaped glove fitted into his right arm.

Kirabi leapt at Kamui, drawing his fist behind him.

"Your turn to burst, Freak Eyes."

Kamui stepped over Kirabi's oncoming fist and twisted around to launch some kuni at him. The tails swatted the daggers away. Kirabi was even more interested in his opponent now. This character was the only one other than his brother who had been able to deflect his Rari Atto punch. Kirabi squatted down, then launched himself at Kamui again, like a cannon ball.

The Akatsuki member blinked, and another water dragon roared. The tails at Kirabi's back reached forward and evaporated the dragon into steam. Kirabi reached forward with his right arm, and the claw-shaped glove extended so fast that it reached Kamui. Kamui bent down, flashing through hand seals for once. He felt the demon chakra burning him for a moment, then his doton technique sunk him into the ground. Kirabi's claw brushed past him.

Kamui reappeared at a corner of the trail, then ran into the cave. He had to rethink his strategy. His multiple-element advanced bloodlimit worked well against any opponent except a jinchuuriki who had a good relationship with his demon, or so it seemed. He could neither approach Kirabi long range, middle range, nor close range. Genjutsu would be out of the question. Hachibi would be able to get Kirabi out of the genjutsu at any time. Kamui was not too worried by this. When a ninja cannot access his ninjutsu, genjutsu or taijutsu skills, he simply turns to the fundamentals.

Itachi had mentioned this to his fresh genin team Team Seven, "Ninja Lesson Thirteen. A jounin with a leaf is more dangerous than a genin with a kunai." Essentially, everything boiled down to skill. Kamui was confident that he was well above Kirabi and Hachibi combined. He covered the cave ceiling easily.

"Hiding in a hole won't do you any good," Kirabi called out as he stepped into the cave. Kamui's eyes flashed gold, glowing in the absolute darkness. Kirabi was drawn to the light like a moth. Kamui split into two clones, then one ran to the side while another activated a genjutsu.

The jinchuuriki was still for two seconds. Kamui ran into him and pulled him into a bear hug, flinging them both into the ground. It was a wrestler's takedown move. The demonic chakra spilled into him but Kamui did not care. Then Kirabi woke up from the genjutsu. "Illusions don't work well on me, bitch."

"They work well enough," Kamui retorted. His original body stood at the mouth of the cave and raised his hands together into a typical chakra concentrating seal. Above them, pasted all across the cave ceiling, was a web of exploding notes. Kamui injected chakra into them, and they exploded with several loud bangs. The ceiling cracked, then crumbled. The entire cave buried Kirabi and Kamui's clone. The mass was enough to kill a hundred jounin exerting all of their chakra.

Through the big mound of rock, he heard a soft murmur.

"Freak Eyes, you've pushed me this far, I'll give you that.

You're like puss in boots, pretty phat.

Now you must meet my true form, right off the bat."

Kamui narrowed his eyes and focused alertly on the rock. He should have known a developed jinchuuriki like Kirabi would not be so easy to knock unconcious. The cave remains shivered, the burst apart like dynamite. Kamui twisted away from the oncoming rocks easily, but before he knew it, octopus-like tentacles were stretching towards him, brown with suction rings on them. He knew he was staring at one of Hachibi's tail. Dodging the swipe, Kamui alighted on the tail and ran up as quickly as he could.

Hachibi was huge. He was as large as the cave. Kamui espied Kirabi sinking, sleeping, into Hachibi's body. His eyes flashed yellow, because lightning traveled the fastest. If I can just disrupt his transformation-

"Gaargh!" Kirabi screamed. Electric bolts attacked Kirabi like hornets to a honeycomb. His eyes snapped open. As he woke up, Hachibi let off a guttural bellow that rustled the leaves of the forest. Off in the distance, from his height vantage on Hachibi's head, Kamui saw lights in the Lightning Country city flicker. Then Hachibi collapsed into itself, and they fell to the ground. Kamui rolled forward to break his fall, while Kirabi smashed into the earth, unconcious.

He had to leave the scene quickly before the Rai ninjas came. Kamui pulled out a scroll snapped to his belt under his cloak and unfurled it. On the long parchment was a single seal. Kamui walked over to Kirabi, took off his cloak and drapped it over the jinchuuriki, and with a bite of his thumb, sealed Kirabi inside. Then, he rolled up the scroll and stowed it away again.

Kamui sighed with fatigue, and went into the forest. He was feeling sore and drained.

He reached the city without interruption. He could hear ninjas rushing to the forest, but nobody suspected him because he was not wearing the definable Akatsuki cloak. However, a group of teenage girls giggled when he passed by. He was wearing a gray tank top and black pants. "He's so pale; beautiful like an angel", they whispered. To his mind, they were mad. To be called an angel was an insult.

The teppanyaki restaurant was overcrowded when he got there. But as he entered the shop, something was very wrong. Everybody was standing as if around a circular boundary. The men in front were muttering angrily, the women behind peeking behind fingers. Babies and children were at the back, in the corners with their older sisters or mothers, crying. Kamui could not see Shisui. He slipped through the crowd like a fish slips through water. Then he stopped.

Standing behind a stick thin commoner who reeked of opium, he saw a man lying face down on the ground in a pool of deep blood. The man had orange hair, but Kamui knew Shisui well enough to tell that it was him. Backing away just as smoothly as he had entered, Kamui left the crowd, then the restaurant all together. Who killed Shisui? He would have to be very skillful to have caught Shisui off guard. But there's no character to the murder other than the fact that it was very cold-blooded; I couldn't feel any emotion back there. And a knife to the throat? Anyone can do that.

Shisui… Kamui lamented briefly. Then he paid his first and last respects to the kamis above for Shisui's untimely entrance to hell.

Sasuke sat on the bunk in his ANBU living quarters. He rarely received letters, but he had one now, from the Land of Water. He knew nobody from there, but he could guess who sent it. With passive eagerness, he tore open the envelope and shook out the folded paper, and read:

----

Uchiha Sasuke

I write this letter because I have some things to tell you, but can't go to Konoha, or won't tell you in ago I left your brother and you so abruptly at the Uchiha hideout, and I think I should explain that. I realised that my sudden hate for Team Seven could have been fabricated just as Haku's memories had been meddled with by Shisui. Unwilling to remain as your enemy no matter my bitter feelings, I thought that by killing Shisui I could accomplish something. I killed him, and I did get my memories back. But I have no excuse for the things I've done. I apologise for the people that I killed and for distrusting you.

After his death, I wandered around the Ninja World, and experience new things everyday. I've worked at a blacksmith's, three ronin houses, a ramen shop, an onsen and have now settled at a dojo, at least for a few months. The cook needed a helper. I wash his things, run his errands and assist him in meal preparation, but I still get paid less than him. It's amusing.

Sometimes I cross the paths of hunter-nin. Unfortunately we cannot part quietly, but I am still alive. The fights keep me active with my ninja skills and they remind me of the time I had living in the Uchiha Mansion. Now, not speaking to you face to face, I am not ashamed to say that I miss it.

Thank you.

p.s. It's 1st July today. Maybe this will reach you in time... Happy seventeenth birthday.

----

Kazuya had not signed off. Knowing him, he would be too embarrassed to even ask for a reply. Sasuke checked the back of the envelope, and grinned. There was a return address. That would be Kazuya's typical, disguised cue that he was hoping for a reply, other than the fact that he had mentioned, in passing, of course, that he would be staying at the dojo for a few months.

Other than the old awkward social habits, Kazuya had changed. The letter was formal. He was probably hesitant and did not know how Sasuke felt about him, but Sasuke had forgiven him the minute they found him gone, and thought about him sometimes between his ANBU missions. He was officially captain of a six man team. From the letter, though, Kazuya's outlook had changed. It was whimsical and brighter, not cold and secretive. Sasuke missed his younger brother even more.

He went to his desk and cleared away the files of mission reports and got out a clean sheet of foolscap, and a pen. He would be very glad to corresspond with Kazuya, so he began to write.

Author's Note: Thanks for reading this far. Don't understand how you could, but thanks, it means a lot.

For this chapter, I had to go to wikipedia for some background info, then the manga and reread the chapters of Kirabi/Hachibi/Hawk interaction to get a feel of Kirabi because I had no idea how to write the fight. I came up with the shittiest rap verses I could think of, and incorporated some of the manga scenes to make Kirabi come out a little, because I do a poor job of him like that.

I decided not to describe Shisui's execution and leave Kazuya's (3rd Person POV) perspective entirely after the Killer Bee stalking scene because it just felt right, especially with the letter at the end.

The author would like to thank you for your continued support. Your review has been posted.